Scleral Electrode Device for Rapid Ciliary Muscle Stimulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for stimulating accommodation in both human subjects and animal models are inadequate, as they are either slow, invasive, or ethically challenging, and fail to elicit rapid and repeated accommodative responses, which are essential for studying presbyopia and accommodation processes.
Innovation Solution
The development of electrostimulation devices, such as the accommodation stimulation speculum and scleral contact lens, which use concentric ring electrodes to deliver electrical stimulation to the ciliary muscle, allowing for rapid, non-invasive, and repeated accommodative responses, and can be used to record ciliary muscle activity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If drug stimulation (pilocarpine) is used to induce accommodation, then accommodation response can be achieved, but the response is very slow (30-45 minutes to maximum) compared to natural accommodation (100-200 milliseconds)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces chemical drug stimulation with electrical stimulation to induce accommodation. Electrical stimulation through ring electrodes applied to the sclera can rapidly activate the ciliary muscle, achieving accommodation response speeds comparable to natural accommodation (100-200 milliseconds) rather than the slow 30-45 minute response time associated with pilocarpine drug administration.
2Speed
If electrical stimulation is used in animal models to achieve dynamic accommodative response, then rapid accommodation can be elicited, but complex, lengthy and invasive surgical procedures are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the stimulation system into two separate components: ring electrodes that are non-invasively applied to the sclera and a stimulation source that can be externally controlled. This segmentation eliminates the need for invasive surgical implantation of electrodes within the eye, while still enabling rapid electrical stimulation of the ciliary muscle to achieve dynamic accommodative responses.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces ring electrodes as an intermediary element placed on the sclera to transmit electrical stimulation to the underlying ciliary muscle. This intermediary approach allows electrical stimulation to be delivered effectively without requiring direct surgical access to the muscle or invasive implantation procedures, thereby simplifying the overall experimental protocol.
3Reliability
If visual stimulus (near reading text) is used to elicit accommodation in conscious human subjects, then natural accommodation can be stimulated, but subjects may choose not to accommodate or may not elicit strong effort
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs electrical stimulation to directly activate the ciliary muscle, bypassing the need for voluntary subject participation or visual stimulus interpretation. This self-service approach ensures that accommodation responses are elicited reliably and consistently regardless of subject motivation, attention, or understanding of the experimental task, thereby improving response reliability while simplifying the stimulation protocol.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
These devices enable rapid and controlled accommodative responses, allowing for the regulation of frequency, duration, and amplitude of accommodative stimuli, facilitating the study of accommodation and presbyopia without causing discomfort or harm, and can be used to assess accommodative potential in individuals and animals.
Implementation Method 1
electrical stimulation source in electrical connection with the inner ring electrode and the outer ring electrode
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments described herein generally relate to devices and methods for stimulation or recording of accommodation of an eye. Accommodation of an eye naturally occurs through contraction of the ciliary muscle. Embodiments described herein can deliver electrostimulation to the ciliary muscle through a pair of electrodes which deliver power over an area of the sclera which is both positioned above and over an area which is substantially equivalent to the surface area of the ciliary muscle. In further embodiments, electrical impulses produced by the ciliary muscle can be received by one or more electrodes positioned proximate the ciliary muscle. Thus, by embodiments described herein, accommodation of the eye can be reproducibly achieved by external stimulation of the ciliary muscle or measured based on electrical impulses generated by or in conjunction with the ciliary muscle.